SWAN LAKE - Oregon Ballet Theatre

CHRISTOPHER STOWELL’S
SWAN LAKE
Yuka Iino and Ruben Martin in
Christopher Stowell’s Swan Lake.
Photo by Blaine Truitt Covert.
CHRISTOPHER STOWELL’S
SWAN LAKE
Oregon Ballet Theatre’s production of Christopher Stowell’s Swan Lake.
Photo by Blaine Truitt Covert.
SWAN LAKE SYNOPSIS
Act I
Prince Siegfried’s courtiers and subjects gather for an impromptu party celebrating his 21st birthday. The queen arrives
to remind Siegfried that he will one day be king and must prepare to accept adult responsibilities. The next evening at
the ball commemorating his coming of age, he is to choose a fiancée. However, Siegfried has yet to meet someone that
touches his heart and is saddened that he will lose his freedom. At the party’s close he departs with his mother’s birthday
gift—a crossbow—to hunt in the solitude of the forest.
Act II
Deep in the forest Siegfried discovers a swan gliding across a moonlit lake. As he draws his crossbow, the bird is
transformed into a beautiful woman. She is Odette, the Queen of the Swans. She and her maidens have been doomed by
the evil sorcerer Von Rothbart to be swans by day and are allowed their humanity only from midnight to dawn. With gentle
patience Siegfried softens the terror of the Swan Queen and her flock. She tells the Prince that only the love of a man who
swears eternal fidelity can break Von Rothbart’s spell. Siegfried now understands perfect love and vows to marry Odette.
As dawn approaches, Von Rothbart rises out of the shadows. His magic draws Odette from Siegfried’s arms and summons
the maidens back to Swan Lake.
Act III
Guests arrive at the palace for Prince Siegfried’s birthday ball. The queen has invited six beautiful princesses as prospective
brides. Siegfried dances courteously but indifferently with each of them—his heart is pledged to Odette. As his mother
insists that he choose among the princesses, two uninvited guests appear dressed in black. They are Von Rothbart,
transformed into a stately count, and his daughter Odile, who has been magically disguised as Siegfried’s beloved white
swan, Odette.
After dancers from Spain, Italy, Russia, and Hungary entertain the court, Odile exerts all her wiles to beguile the prince
and trick him into believing that she is Odette. A vision of the true Swan Queen appears at the palace window to warn of
the deception, but the Prince is mesmerized by Odile and joyously declares that she will be his bride. Triumphant, Von
Rothbart reveals the treachery. Leaving the court in an upheaval, Siegfried flees in search of his true love.
Act IV
Deep sadness descends upon Swan Lake. In a frightening storm created by the evil sorcerer, Siegfried finds Odette and
begs her forgiveness. She forgives him, but nothing can be changed. He has broken his vows and Odette is doomed to
remain a swan forever.
History of Swan Lake: The Story
Painting depicting Lohengrin
Statuette of Sirena de
Canosa, a half-bird,
half-woman from Greek
mythology
History of Swan Lake: The Choreography
Drawings from the late 1800s depicting an
early version of the Swan Lake story
Choreography notations for Swan Lake by Oregon
Ballet Theatre’s Ballet Master, Lisa Kipp
Swan Lake: From Russia to America
Photo from Petipa and Ivanov’s 1895
production of Swan Lake.
Jacqueline Martin Schumacher
and Lew Christensen in
San Francisco Ballet’s
production of Swan Lake.
Swan Lake: The music
Peter Ilych Tchaikovsy’s Swan Lake score
Image depicting a floor pattern from an earlier
Sadler Wells production of Swan Lake.
Vocabulary
Anna Pavlova demonstrating an
arabesque in a 1909 production of
Swan Lake.
Arabesque – To stand on one leg with the other leg extended to the back in a 90º angle
from the hip. This can be done with a straight or bent standing leg or sur les pointes.
Attitude – Standing on one leg, such as in arabesque, with the lifted leg bent at a 90º
angle and well turned out. The leg may be lifted to the front or back.
Bourée – Whether done sur les demi-pointes or sur les pointes, it is a traveling step done
with legs crossed and ankles close together.
Corps de ballet – The company artists who perform as an ensemble. The choreography in
Swan Lake is very challenging for the swans of the corps de ballet because the women
must dance in unison, striving to mirror one another’s every move. They must also stand
on stage, perfectly still, in specific poses for long periods of time and then at just the
right moment in the music dance with great energy again.
Natalia Makarova
performing a bourée
Floor pattern – The spatial design made by the actions of the dancers. In Swan Lake the
corps de ballet creates many symmetrical and asymmetrical designs on the stage.
Pas de deux – A dance for two people. At the SPS we will see Odette and Prince Siegfried
dance a pas de deux while the corps de ballet frames them on the stage.
Pas de trois – A dance for three people. At the SPS we will see a Pas de Trois from Act
I of Swan Lake.
Sur les demi-pointes – To dance on the balls of the feet with the heels lifted as high as
possible from the floor.
Alison Roper and Artur Sultanov
perform a pas de deux in
Christopher Stowell’s Swan Lake.
Photo by Blaine Truitt Covert.
Sur les pointes – To dance on the tips of the toes. Women wear special shoes called
pointe shoes. DON’T TRY THIS WITHOUT POINTE SHOES AND TRAINING.